CHAPTER 867: CHAPTER 867: A SURPRISE ASSAULT

"Fire!!"

The towering gun barrels spewed fire snakes, and the deafening sound of artillery echoed across the wilderness.

A total of 52 "Fire Crossbow" self-propelled guns were divided into 5 artillery positions, launching six volleys against the enemy artillery positions on the east bank of the river that had revealed their positions by firing!

As a self-propelled gun independently developed by the Southern Legion, the "Fire Crossbow" was deeply loved by the entire Southern Legion for its excellent support efficiency, second only to the 902mm giant cannon and shallow-water heavy artillery boat in popularity.

Though the entire vehicle still used the chassis of the Conqueror series armor, both its automatic loading system and fire control system, as well as the thick and long 200mm gun, were all autonomously designed by the Southern Legion according to their battlefield needs.

Beside the five artillery positions, 12 anti-aircraft vehicles were on standby, divided into three anti-aircraft positions, to guard against airborne threats.

Although the Horn Number monitored this airspace, considering the Alliance not only had propeller planes but also next-generation fighters, the legion did not move the anti-aircraft cannons to the frontline as they did when fighting indigenous people.

At one of the artillery positions, a man wearing an officer’s hat squinted at the roaring artillery not far away, a cold smile on his lips.

His name was Toran, commander of the support team of the 36th Mechanized Infantry Brigade, with the military rank of Thousands of Leaders.

A few minutes earlier, Alliance’s artillery hidden across the river couldn’t hold back and launched an attack. He immediately retaliated with the coordinates provided by Commander Ryan.

As expected, those 155mm cannons belonging to the Alliance had been reduced to scrap metal by their counterfire.

The adjutant standing next to him chuckled, a hint of sarcasm on his face.

"This round of shelling should be enough for the Alliance to drink a bottle."

The moment the enemy initiated artillery fire, they had already confirmed that their opponent was undoubtedly the Alliance.

Toran chuckled lightly.

"Not just a bottle, I think two bottles are enough."

Adjutant: "Hahaha!"

Just as the two were chatting and laughing, the communicator on Toran’s shoulder suddenly vibrated.

Receiving an order from the command, Toran immediately restrained his playful expression and pressed the connect button.

Soon, the voice of the command center communicator came through.

"... A ten thousand strong unit is advancing towards your direction from the southeast, equipped with a certain number of vehicles. It’s tentatively judged to be the First Mechanized Infantry Division of Jinjaron Harbor."

Toran’s eyebrows slightly raised.

"Have they declared war on us?"

Communicator: "No, like the Alliance, it’s evidently that volunteer force thing... But don’t worry, they won’t get close to you. The 37th Brigade is advancing towards their direction, and I need you to provide support for the 37th Brigade. I will temporarily transfer your communication channel to their side."

Not worrying about this unit either, Toran did not show the slightest panic on his face, but instead became concerned for his brothers on the frontline.

The Horn Number just arrived in this area and hadn’t dropped anchor yet. He worried that without their artillery cover, the first thousand team exploring across the river might encounter sudden issues.

"Understood... What about our frontline troops?"

Communicator: "They have already engaged with the Alliance’s front-line troops. We have already dispatched ground forces for reinforcement. The current engagement distance is close, you can’t assist them for the time being."

"Got it."

Putting down the communicator, Toran frowned slightly, but an unshakable concern remained in his heart.

However, since the command center had given such instructions, he could only follow them, ordering each artillery group to cease fire and set new design parameters based on the coordinates provided by the command, aiming in the direction of the First Mechanized Infantry Division of Jinjaron Harbor.

At this moment, neither Toran nor any officers and artillerymen noticed that a Hummingbird hovering in the sky had already set its sights on them.

Less than two kilometers away on a small hillside, Wild Wind and Night Ten lay behind a dirt slope, one operating the drone to observe, the other communicating with the main force.

"... This is Night Ten. We have confirmed the enemy artillery unit’s position, coordinates updated on the map."

After a brief pause, the voice on the communication channel came again.

"Received... Can you find a way to lock down the enemy’s artillery command center?"

Night Ten gave Wild Wind a glance, then manipulated the VM screen to adjust the zoom, quickly locking on to some individuals who looked like officers.

These Weilante people had no flaws tactically and strategically, yet each was unusually arrogant, seemingly not viewing their opponent as a threat.

However, this also saved them time. Night Ten swiftly reported the clues to Fang Chang’s side.

"I’m looking...There are several guys who look like officers near the C point marker, do you want me to find a way to take them out?"

Fang Chang calmly replied.

"No need, just keep an eye on their vehicles and don’t let them escape."

Night Ten: "Understood!"

Simultaneously, in a grass-covered field ten kilometers away, numerous dark exoskeletons stood at the edge of a field ridge.

Most were Alliance exoskeletons, with some captured from the 34th Brigade, with a bandage wrapped around the arm as a distinguishing mark.

Although the Burning Corps players looked down on the legion’s exoskeletons, the captured equipment was still quite attractive to the soldiers of Poluo Country.

After retreating from Reed Bull County, the Burning Corps quickly reunited with the 11th Brigade of Poluo Country, who had also withdrawn from Reed Bull County, under Old White’s leadership, and led them toward the Bull State area.

To enhance ally mobility, the Burning Corps players also imparted the "Human Mule" tactic to them.

That is, one person wearing an exoskeleton carries another teammate without an exoskeleton on their back.

In the past, when the Alliance fought with the Chewing Bone Tribe, they relied on this method for maneuvering.

Although the marching speed couldn’t match that of bicycles or horseback riding, it was certainly better than running on two legs.

The only downside was energy consumption.

However, moving with the players alleviated this concern.

The Air Force brothers occasionally dropped supplies, including solid hydrogen batteries.

Moreover, the power armors utilizing cold fusion technology served as mobile power banks, connecting them to transfer electricity to the exoskeleton’s fuel cells.

Standing next to Old White, Yocale, wearing a legion-standard exoskeleton, eagerly asked with a spirited demeanor.

"When do we move out?"

Now equipped with upgraded gear, he was eager to teach the legion a lesson.

Watching this guy wearing legion gear salute in the Alliance manner, Old White couldn’t help but chuckle.

"No rush. Next is the Air Force brothers’ work; we just watch from the sidelines and prepare to patch things up."

Yocale was stunned for a moment.

"This time... aren’t we going to confiscate their guns?"

Fang Chang shook his head.

"No need for that, we haven’t studied that stuff yet, even if we take it, we wouldn’t know how to use it."

It’s mainly not worth researching.

Based on the intelligence obtained by the Alliance, that thing is just a turret modified from the Conqueror tank, with average shooting accuracy and rate of fire.

Yocale hesitated for a moment, then suggested with some embarrassment.

"Well... can we keep a few self-propelled guns? Of course, we won’t let you take the risk, just like before, we’ll be responsible for capturing them!"

It’s not that he’s greedy.

Mainly because that thing is too enviably powerful, and after firing, one can just pull up their pants and run.

Although for the Alliance, it’s nothing special, but for Poluo Country, which can’t even measure a few tractors, it’s a different story.

Fang Chang looked at him peculiarly.

"Leave them for you, can you operate them?"

Yocale chuckled and shook his head, then quickly nodded.

"No! But we can learn!"

Old White and Fang Chang exchanged a glance.

"Should we let them try?"

"Alright."

Having a guerrilla division with self-propelled guns sounds pretty exciting.

He didn’t mind allies picking up some junk, they might have extraordinary effects in the upcoming battles.

With this thought, Fang Chang didn’t hesitate anymore, he immediately took out the VM and called Falling Feather.

"Falling Feather, the plan has changed, you go support the Edge team; we’ll handle the artillery."

The communication channel was filled with noticeable noise, indicating that Falling Feather was already airborne and heading their way.

"Received... are you sure you’re okay?"

Fang Chang joked.

"Are you kidding? Is there anything wrong with me?"

Falling Feather: "Haha! Brother Fang Chang is awesome! Good luck to you!"

Fang Chang grinned, hung up the communication, and then looked at Yocale, who stood beside him like a student.

"We’ve communicated with the allies, destroy switched to capture, get your people ready, we’re planning to go up."

Yocale promptly replied.

"Leave it to us, you’ve already helped us so much, how can we trouble you again?"

Fang Chang raised his hand to stop him.

"Don’t say such distant words, right now driving away the invaders is most important. We’ll lead the charge, you just follow us, remember to listen to our commands, don’t rush too far ahead, and don’t hesitate too much."

Fang Chang didn’t mind them wanting to follow along, but leaving it entirely to them made him a bit uneasy.

Even if they’ve upgraded their gear, with over 3,000 exoskeletons and automatic firepower and light anti-tank equipment, but whether they can use them well remains uncertain.

Seeing Yocale listening intently, Fang Chang casually spoke again.

"By the way, for surrendering enemy soldiers, remember to prioritize capturing them. We’ll help you remove the tracking devices from the vehicles, but you’ll need their statements on how to operate the vehicles."

Yocale stood tall and saluted.

"Understood!"

Fang Chang nodded approvingly then waved his hand.

"Action!"

...

Horn Number Airship.

Seated on the bridge, John stared intently at the pontoon bridge spanning the river and the forest on the other side, his brow suddenly furrowing as he turned to the adjutant beside him.

"Haven’t they been in there a bit too long?"

His adjutant was slightly startled, then nodded solemnly.

"It is somewhat... unusual."

It’s not just the time.

It’s the people too.

Seeing soldiers from the 36th Mechanized Infantry Brigade crossing the river one vehicle after another, the forest was crackling with gunfire, yet no one was withdrawing from the front.

Logically speaking, this kind of tug-of-war should be fought by clones.

Clearly, the allies misjudged the enemy forces’ scale in the forest and overestimated their own combat power.

Martin, donned in a lab coat, eagerly turned to John.

"Shall we test the poison? This toxin has minimal effect on the Weilante people, so small it can be ignored, perfect for a real-world test."

John glanced at him without addressing the madman, then reached out and grabbed the communicator, switching to Commander Wolfe.

"Commander Wolfe, are you encountering any issues on your side?"

Responses soon came through the communication channel.

"No, just a few small grasshoppers, we handled them with ease."

"Really."

Though he had no intent of sarcasm, the words slipped out and ended up misinterpreted.

Wolfe: "Are you questioning our combat power?"

Do you still question your combat power?

John sneered inwardly but still spoke in as gentle a tone as possible.

"I don’t mean that, I’m just worried you’ll mess up Commander Ryan’s plan. If we want to destroy Poluo Country within two months, we must move our troops to Tiandu by the end of the month."

"Your worry is unnecessary. I will remember every instruction from Commander Ryan." Wolfe responded coldly.

The situation of his subordinates is indeed not very optimistic, but it’s far from being troublesome.

He had already pushed five thousand teams up, and according to the report from the frontline leaders of thousands, they had successfully reversed the situation and were counterattacking the guerrilla team in the forest.

At present, two 155mm cannons had been seized, and those guys wearing gas masks suffered significant casualties after a brainless charge. It won’t take long before they seize the mountaintop closest to the riverbank.

Although their casualties were also considerable, considering the opposition were volunteer from Alliance, these casualties were acceptable.

There’s no need to tell the Horn Number Airship, and even if they did, it wouldn’t matter.

At such a close distance, the airship’s artillery is useless, especially since the airship hasn’t dropped anchor yet.

They would only be sneered at by the air force for struggling so long with a bunch of indigenous guerrillas.

Wolfe might not know his opponent well, but he knows his own people’s disposition too well.

Hearing the disconnecting sound from the communicator, John’s brow twitched fiercely as he stuffed the communicator back to his shoulder.

A bunch of ungrateful landlubbers!

He was kindly concerned, yet it was treated like donkey liver and lungs.

"Being able to engage with the 36th Mechanized Infantry Brigade for so long, the opponent’s combat power is not to be underestimated." The adjutant standing by said with a solemn expression.

Although he initially underestimated the opponent, now he couldn’t help but pay serious attention.

John sneered.

"There’s no need to say not to be underestimated... That should be the Death Legion, which won great feats in Brocade River Province, our allies hit a hard rock."

He once saw that iconic gas mask in Triumph Newspaper.

It was undoubtedly the Death Legion.

It is said that this is the elite troop of the Alliance, they took down a hill that even the brothers of the Eastern Legion found tricky during the Torch battle.

Is the Alliance crazy?

Elite troops keep being sent to this broken place, or are they indeed a bunch of clones?

John’s face was gloomy, with a constant ominous feeling in his heart.

His worries aren’t entirely from the tactical level.

There’s also the strategic level.

Why does it feel like, as the fight goes on, he and the Torch are being pointed to as a "Heaven disaster"?

This is not a good omen.

At this moment, he didn’t notice that when Martin standing by heard the name Death Legion, his face suddenly showed an expression of frenzy.

"...Death Legion... Hehehe... Can’t believe it’s those guys."

He laughed strangely, his pupils faintly emitting light, the expression seemed to see prey.

John pondered for a while, then raised his right hand.

He couldn’t wait until the army cried for help before taking action, he must be prepared beforehand.

"Prepare to drop the anchor chain—"

Before his words were finished, suddenly a string of unnoticed ripples flashed across the radar.

Without missing the fleeting signal, the operator sitting in front of the console immediately shouted.

"Enemy fighter plane group detected!"

"Speed approaching two Mach!"

"Target has entered our northeast direction!"

"They are moving along the clouds, a total of 10 planes!!"

"Damn! Their target isn’t us, it’s the ground!"

John was startled and immediately ordered.

"Launch the air-to-air missiles!"

"Yes!" The operator sitting at the console agreed without hesitation and then pressed the red button.

Meanwhile, a beehive-shaped missile pod rose from the top of the airship, aiming at the airspace where the enemy was detected.

"Woo—!"

Accompanied by an urgent buzzing, ten air-to-air missiles shot out, dragging long tail flames, roaring towards the ten speeding fighter planes.

Given the current firing angle and relative speed, those ten enemy planes have less than one in ten thousand chance of evading!

A trace of a pleased smile appeared on John’s lips, as if he had already seen the scrap iron turning into fireballs and fireworks blossoming in the sky.

However, at that moment, something unexpected happened: the ten air-to-air missiles, after approaching the target airspace, oddly missed their mark.

They didn’t find that plane approaching at supersonic speed, only discovering a missile emitting radar ripples and rushing towards them after a futile search.

"It’s a decoy missile!!"

The radar operator exclaimed, and John’s pupils shrank sharply beside him.

"Switch to anti-aircraft cannon! Quick!"

His order was issued very quickly, however, it was also too late.

At the same time they noticed the anomaly, the speeding decoy missile exploded instantly, releasing an electromagnetic pulse attack into the surrounding airspace.

With the guidance heads damaged by the electromagnetic pulse, the ten air-to-air missiles immediately wandered in the air like blind flies, some plummeting to the ground, others drilling into the clouds.

Meanwhile, a true Thunder Aircraft suddenly emerged from the clouds.

Only one aircraft!

"Damn it!"

Realizing that he had been tricked, John cursed loudly and stood up abruptly from his chair.

His eyes were fixed on the plane outside the floor-to-ceiling window, wishing he could pierce it down with his gaze.

However, the plane ignored him and directly aimed at the ground, unloading the two rocket pods hanging under its wings.

Twenty-four guided ground rockets shot out like a swarm, locking onto the 36th Mechanized Infantry Brigade’s armored personnel carriers parked at the edge of the forest and speeding toward them.

Everything happened in an instant.

The targeted vehicles had no time to react and were blown open by the rockets that fell from the sky.

"Boom!!!"

Explosive flames flickered across the forest edge, nearly twenty armored personnel carriers were blasted into scrap metal!

The firelight reflected off a row of stunned faces, and the Weilante soldiers crouching nearby with rifles bore expressions filled with disbelief and despair.

With the loss of the vehicular fire support, the advantage that the 36th Mechanized Infantry Brigade’s frontline troops had fought hard to secure quickly evaporated at a visible pace.

It could even be said that those advantages were originally given to them deliberately by the enemy.

And the purpose was to lure them forward!

John’s eyes widened, bloodshot veins crawled through his pupils, and his clenched fist slammed hard on the armrest of his chair.

At the same time, a curse from Wolfe came over the communication channel.

"What the hell are your anti-aircraft guns doing?! How did a plane get that close to us?!"

John knew he was at fault, but he still shouted back stiffly.

"You blame us... what about the other anti-aircraft guns?"

"We—damn it! I don’t have time for this nonsense!" Wolfe was about to say something but couldn’t and hastily cut off the communication.

The Thunder Aircraft that broke into the battlefield didn’t linger in the nearby airspace; as soon as it struck successfully, it quickly exited the battlefield, heading back towards Tiandu.

By this time, the airship’s anti-aircraft missiles had finished loading, however, onlooking at the receding trail, John could do nothing but stare helplessly.

Meanwhile, as the previous airstrike ended, the new round of counterattack from the enemy seemed to begin.

Explosive smoke and flashes of fire turned from jagged zigzag lines into an inward-converging curve!

Like a closing mouth!

They intended to swallow the five trapped thousand teams in the forest in one bite!

Even standing on the airship, John could clearly feel the situation of the 36th Mechanized Infantry Brigade swiftly deteriorating from a balance to a desperate state.

To support allied forces, Wolfe also pushed the last 5 thousand teams forward!

Including the remaining twenty or so armored personnel carriers and nearly sixty armored troop carriers!

John, anxious beyond words, turned to his adjutant and urged hurriedly.

"Have the anchor chains been dropped yet? Hurry!"

The adjutant, sweating profusely, could only rush to urge the department responsible for dropping the anchor.

Under his anxious urging, the anchor chains were soon thrown down from the airship, landing heavily on the muddy plain, kicking up clouds of dust.

But at this moment, another sudden message came through.

"Report! A group of light infantry has been spotted 27 kilometers southwest of us!"

"They are advancing towards the artillery positions of the 36th Mechanized Infantry Brigade!"

"Southwest?!" John’s heart skipped a beat, and he immediately looked at the map, his heart sinking.

They were flanked!

How did these people sneak up from behind under their surveillance?!

No—

There’s another possibility.

These live forces didn’t come from Tiandu’s direction but had been lurking around Reed Bull County and followed them to Niuzhou!

Cursing the Air Force No.7 responsible for reconnaissance, John immediately relayed this intelligence to Commander Wolfe on the ground.

After a brief silence, a despondent voice came across the communication channel.

"Our allies... The 37th Mechanized Infantry Brigade ran into the First Mechanized Infantry Division of Jinjaron Harbor, or to be precise, the allied forces of Jinjaron Harbor and Tiger State and Leopard State."

"Don’t know where they got over a hundred Conqueror No.10 tanks, our allies’ armored personnel carriers can’t penetrate those things... They’re forced to retreat westward."

John held his breath for a moment, his previously calm expression could not help but show a trace of panic.

This was undoubtedly the worst news!

At this moment, almost all the troops of the 36th Mechanized Infantry Brigade were stuck across the river.

If the 37th Mechanized Infantry Brigade cannot stop Poluo Country’s reinforcements, then the 36th Mechanized Infantry Brigade could likely be captured in full strength!

By a bunch of natives...

No matter how strong the Horn Number’s firepower was, it couldn’t fire over friendly forces’ heads or get stranded to help.

The enemy adopted an extremely rogue tactic, waiting for them to get closer and then sticking to them in combat.

John’s Adam’s apple moved, and a trembling voice squeezed out of his throat.

"...Now what do we do?"

On the other side of the communication channel, after a brief silence, an extremely reluctant yet helpless plea came through.

"...Give me a hand."

Confronted with the rapidly deteriorating battle situation, Wolfe was also powerless, and could only swallow his pride and plead.

At least he couldn’t be captured.

Otherwise, he would become the first Ten Thousand Leader to be captured in the entire war.

This not only concerned his personal pride but also that of the Southern Legion.

At the same time, it’s the only thing he could do at this moment for Commander Ryan and General Giulion...